Festival oh glorious festival! Who wouldn’t eat two or three of these alongside some ackee and saltfish, or escovitch fish or simply by itself? Festival is fried sweet dough.  In every culture and cuisine there is some sort of fried dough that has the local natives in a frenzy. For Jamaicans, our fried dough treat is called Festival. Although its usually prepared with breakfast, it can be eaten at any time of the day.

I have a confession to make: While frying up a batch of these I ate about three of them, before the completion of the entire meal. By the time I served it on a plate, even though I was full, I felt as if I could eat another three or four. Festival is so satisying and comforting that it really doesnt warrant being eaten with a full course meal. It stands its ground and does well on its own.

Festival pairs excellently with Ackee and Saltfish

My son D’Angelo is always encouraging his friends to taste his mom’s exotic foods.  Because these children are diverse, every dish that I create is exotic to them.  D’Angelo offered a festival to his Italian friend and when he asked for seconds, I knew he was hooked. This child was curious. He inquired about how it was prepared, and wanted to know if D’Angelo could make it as well.  You should have heard my 12 yr old son, D’Angelo as if he was the one who actually made it: “Mom, it’s just flour and water right?” I responded: “sort of.”  If they think I’m going to allow D’Angelo to stand over a skillet filled with olive or coconut oil, over my stove, while the power is on….they must be out of their mind. D’Angelo can stick to preparing other dishes but maneuvering over a pot of hot oil, is out of the question.